Two massive ships, each with four decks—two of which were gun decks—one black and one white, were desperately fleeing northwest amidst a barrage of cannon fire and towering water columns. They flew nearly identical skull flags, differing only in the color of the cat ears.
Behind them, more than a dozen Marine warships were in hot pursuit, relentlessly bombarding them with cannon fire.
"Damn it, why? Why have these Marines suddenly turned into rabid dogs, hell-bent on chasing us, meow?" On the white ship, Fishing Cat angrily cursed at the distant fleet. Just then, the Den Den Mushi resting on his palm spoke up.
"Calm down, White Cat. I suspect it's the work of the nobles from the South Sea countries. You know how many noble ships we've plundered over the years, meow."
"Plus, three months ago, we broke into the palace of the Kingdom of Renna and emptied their treasury. That must have infuriated the nobles, so they've spent a fortune to have the Marines hunt us down, meow." On the black ship, Tripod Cat, who looked almost identical to Fishing Cat except for his black attire, calmly speculated.
However, he couldn't help but feel something was off. Did these nobles really have that much influence?
Since being spotted by two Marine ships yesterday, it felt like they were being tracked. No matter where they went, groups of warships would appear to chase them. At one point, they were surrounded by ships from three directions!
Another strange thing was that the Marine ships seemed to be deliberately keeping their distance.
"What are the Marines up to, meow?" Tripod Cat ignored the surrounding cannon fire and scanned the nearby waters, deep in thought.
"Ah, who cares what they're up to? I'm so angry right now. Let's find a target and fight them. Maybe if we beat them up, they'll stop chasing us, meow!" Fishing Cat shouted fiercely into the Den Den Mushi.
At the same time, his eyes turned into walnut-shaped, pale yellow cat pupils, his fingers grew sharp claws, and his ears elongated, exuding the dangerous aura of a predator.
"It's here! White Cat Boss's Zoan-type Cat-Cat Fruit: Lion Cat (African) Form!" The crew members, dressed in white fur coats and wearing white cat ears, cheered excitedly.
For these South Sea pirates, who hadn't seen much of the world, the power of a Devil Fruit was a source of endless fascination, as it represented strength.
"No, meow!" Tripod Cat on the black ship firmly stopped him.
"There are too many warships. The combined strength of our two ships can only handle three Marine ships at most. But right now, there are over twenty ships around us. Do you want us both to end up in prison, meow?"
"If you say you're willing, I'd be happy to join you, meow!" Hearing this, Fishing Cat hesitated, the killing intent in his eyes gradually fading. Though impulsive and lively by nature, he wasn't a fool and didn't want to drag his companion down. So, he had to suppress his anger.
"Then what should we do, meow?"
The black cat, Tripod Cat, said, "Keep running. Judging from the direction, I strongly suspect these marines are trying to force us into the Grand Line, meow!"
This was initially just a spontaneous remark, but upon further reflection, it made more and more sense, causing his eyes to light up.
"Yes, that must be it. These South Blue marines accepted the nobles' commission but are wary of our strength and don't want to suffer heavy casualties. So, they're trying to push us into the Grand Line, achieving the nobles' goal of eliminating a threat, meow!"
"So that's how it is, meow."
The white cat, Fishing Cat, also agreed with Tripod Cat's speculation and asked, "So, are we just going to play along with their plan, meow?"
"What else can we do? It seems our actions over the years have thoroughly angered the nobles of the South Blue. There's no place for us here anymore, meow," the latter sighed helplessly.
The former sneered.
"Hmph, the Grand Line it is, then. Let's go. With our combined strength, we can thrive anywhere. Let's see how wealthy the nobles on the Grand Line are, meow!"
On the other side, five massive warships, far larger than the South Blue branch ships, cut through the waves in a triangular formation.
In this part of the South Blue, they stood at the top of the food chain.
"Rear Admiral Dragon, the South Blue's 175th branch reports that the Black Cat Pirates and White Cat Pirates are currently being driven toward us under their pursuit, ten nautical miles away!"
A colonel ran over and reported loudly.
"Understood. Pass the order to prepare for battle," Dragon nodded expressionlessly, while Rear Admiral Avène beside him chuckled.
"These South Blue marines are really enthusiastic!"
In truth, Dragon hadn't anticipated things would develop this way.
Originally, he had only intended to use the pretext of capturing the 'Black Cat' and 'White Cat' to take a small detour before heading to the Kingdom of Tutmos. He planned to notify the nearby three marine branches to coordinate on the day of arrival, catching the enemy off guard.
But who would have thought that the South Blue branches would be so fired up, desperately trying to deliver these two 'cats' to him? They even prepared to provide immediate support if the battle turned urgent.
What does this mean?
It means that even if Dragon were all show and no substance, they would find a way to make him take credit for this victory, comfortably securing the achievement! The ignorance of these South Blue marines, their frog-in-a-well mentality, had kept Rear Admiral Avène laughing these past few days.
"Since that's the case, let's take them along the way. Two Zoan pirates with bounties close to fifty million are indeed a significant threat in this part of the South Blue. Consider it a service to the people," Dragon said calmly, gazing at the sea ahead.
"Pirates with bounties under fifty million, and from the Four Seas at that, probably don't know Haki. Sending a few officers should be enough," Rear Admiral Avène shrugged, unbothered.
"No, I'll handle it personally. We'll end the battle quickly and then immediately change course to launch a surprise attack on the Kingdom of Tutmos!"
As always, Dragon believed in the importance of speed. The detour was only for the element of 'surprise,' but the speed of the 'attack' afterward was the most crucial.
Rear Admiral Avène volunteered, "If that's the case, it might not be appropriate for you, as the commanding officer, to take action. I can handle it on your behalf and ensure a swift resolution."
As the deputy officer for this mission, he felt it was his duty to step up, and building a good relationship with Dragon was also a positive move.
"Thank you, but I'd like to handle it myself and test my Devil Fruit abilities," Dragon politely declined.
"Alright then," Rear Admiral Avène didn't mind, assuming that his commanding officer wanted to show off in front of him and the other Marines.
After all, the Hurricane Fruit, a Logia-type Devil Fruit, certainly had the potential to make an impression, and he was curious to witness a Logia user in action.
In reality, Dragon wasn't thinking about any of that.
He had only recently become a Devil Fruit user, and to conceal his abilities during his defection, he had rarely used them in combat. As a result, his development of the fruit's powers was somewhat lacking, having only fought CP0 once before.
So, he planned to use this opportunity to come up with some effective techniques against those two 'cats.' After all, the 'Slave King' he would soon face, according to intelligence reports, was incredibly strong, with at least a decade of mastery in Haki and even longer experience with his Paramecia-type Devil Fruit.
This was his way of sharpening his skills before the battle!